Citi, Char-Broil, and Others Win Big at the 2017 Searchie Awards

While there were a lot of highlights from C3 this year, the Searchie Awards are always one of our favorite parts of C3.

We had hundreds of nominations this year in eleven categories, and it was a tough task deciding who among all these deserving companies and power users would take home one of these marketing awards. But in the end, the Searchies went to some truly brilliant innovators and leaders in the marketing space.

Sometimes digital marketing organizations get trapped in silos, with different team members totally walled off from each other — but not this year’s winner for Team Enablement, Johns Hopkins Health Systems. They’re top of their class in sharing insights and data to gain more traffic and revenue.

When you have a smaller team than of the most major players, you’ve got to be a “Swiss army knife” kind of marketer. One team stood above the rest in doing more with less, and that team is Advance Auto Parts.

Being a Conductor Searchlight superstar is about more than getting your coveted Legend Certification. It’s about traffic, efficiency, and ROI. And one nominee showed undeniable prowess across the board: Jeffrey Dreiblatt of PwC.

It’s more than just beginner’s luck. Some companies have an aptitude for jumping in the deep end and learning to swim, expertly navigating from ideation to execution to measurement — with the big traffic gains to prove it. And in 2017, that company was Shutterstock.

Sometimes, the people newer to the industry bring the freshest perspective — perspective they put to work driving a winning digital strategy. These innovators are the lifeblood of the marketing space, bringing along their exciting new takes. This year’s Industry Rising Star was none other than Ernie Menold of 451 Marketing.

Industry MVP: Josepf Haslam (EducationDynamics)

The Industry MVP is a thought leader, expert practitioner, and brilliant strategist. But this year’s winner is an master of the industry and a force to be reckoned with. The Industry MVP for 2017 is Josepf Haslam of Education Dynamics.

To have truly excellent global SEO means executing intelligent strategy, no matter what borders or time zones you have to cross. One company put world-class effort and first-rate leadership towards driving a better global ROI, and that company was Citi.

Some companies don’t follow trends — they create them. They take risks, cross rivers, and often, the strategies they implement one year become the industry-wide playbook for the next. Acronym Mediais that company for 2017.

This field was the most competitive of all this year’s Searchies, which just goes to show how many brilliant agencies are doing incredible work. So many nominees delivered best-in-class strategy, execution, and experience for their clients — none more so than Path Interactive.

The final Searchie of the night went to a brand that executed innovative and highly effective organic marketing programs — with serious ROI. In 2017, no one brand reached for the stars better than Ancestry.com.